MCND Begins a Secret Mission in New Video “Movin’”
Let's talk MCND's latest drop THE EARTH: SECRET MISSION Chapter.1. As their first release since the end of the AGE series, which wrapped up with MCND AGE in January, a new era is upon us. This is merely a glimpse at what’s in our future, GEMs—and there is much to be said.
Tracklist:
Movin’
Cat Waltz*
BowwowwoW
H.B.C*
Play Pungak
REASON*
*Author’s favorites
"MOVIN'"
MCND has a distinct hip-hop-meets-EDM style, which is tweaked just a hair for their new title track "Movin'." The song settles into its looped instrumental backing right off the bat, lending it a slightly more serious tone than we've heard from MCND before. That's not to say it's low energy, but in the past MCND has had uniquely high-energy title tracks that have loud and pumping choruses, whereas "Movin'" is similar yet noticeably understated.
“Movin’” has its own energy, and it’s refreshing in its newness for them if nothing else. If I have one critique, it’s that while it's different from what they've done before, there is a certain lack of personality that comes through where previous releases have felt like they took themselves a bit less seriously.
THE MUSIC VIDEO
Opening with a slick new group logo, "Movin'" makes an unexpected combo of the cyberpunk elements that have been increasingly popular among boy groups of recent, and a Middle Eastern marketplace setting. That being said, the imagery is understandably a little mismatched as it weaves performance clips in said marketplace area between those of the other main setting: an all-white “hacking room” where Win sits like a telephone operator from 1965 (it's a good look).
Among those is the hacking room-exclusive B-plot to the music video, where Huijun infiltrates the area to steal a glowing white microphone from a glass case in the middle of the room. The empty mic-holder is a recurring image throughout the video, and later Minjae places it back where it came from. This is the only hint of a possible ongoing narrative, but it’s just as likely to be nothing at all—we’ll find out in due time.
Analogous to what I’d said about the difference between previous releases and "Movin'," the music video has a similar effect. MCND's previous music videos like "Not over," "Crush," and even "ICE AGE" have a certain playfulness, and it's communicated by flirtatious smiles, waves, and winks at the camera throughout. Going from that much personality to the relatively one-note attitude presented in "Movin'," it ends up feeling a little watered-down.
THE EARTH: SECRET MISSION CHAPTER.1
This EP contains six new songs including the title track, and the first B-side is "Cat Waltz," which is a better name for a song than I could have asked for. Given the whimsy of the title, it's not a surprise that "Cat Waltz" is a light and fun song only made cuter by its cat references. It's probably also intentionally a direct contrast to "BowwowwoW," the English onomatopoeia for a dog barking.
A big highlight on the album is "H.B.C," which stands for—of course—"Honey Butter Chip." This one is a classic MCND experience, that energy is high and the synth buildup launches you into the chorus just as hard as you'd want; and best of all, it's literally just about honey butter chips and their superior snacky power.
"Play Pungak" just means "play the music" in English, with "pungak" referring to traditional Korean music. In modern day usage, this phrase is used to express excitement; and while "Play Pungak" doesn't go too hard, it’s still an upbeat song about party rocking, which is always welcome in this house. The album ends with English hip-hop track "REASON,” whose music video trailer was dropped even before the comeback schedule began.
Overall the album seems to be a baby step away from the MCND we've become familiar with, and we encourage our idols to grow and try new things. All we can do now is wait and see what happens next, and hope to God they don’t do Huijun’s hair like that next time.